"Oh, no, of course not."
Mr. Black Cat shook his head. "I only arrived a few weeks before you. There's no way I could have figured that out on my own."
As he spoke, he pointed out the window. "We're not the only two people in this city. You're not the first living person I've t. Based on the information I've gathered, this place is part of a Cursed Item. That old bookstore appears randomly in different cities, and only Enchanters are chosen and pulled inside. Whenever the bookstore changes its location, this place we're in changes as well. The bookstore is in Nolan right now, which is why this place looks like Nolan."
"So, the earliest victim you've t... what era are they from?"
"Around the year 1083 of the Universal Calendar."
"This Epoch?"
"Yes. Oh, don't be so surprised, Candle Mr."
He quickly swallowed the food in his mouth and wiped his hands on a damp towel nearby.
"I think you understand that even if the body doesn't die, the human spirit will eventually fade. That's an accepted principle in mysticism. Because of that, aside from certain naturally long-lived species, most people who wander in here eventually stop thinking as ti passes, becoming little more than breathing husks of flesh. The ones who are still active in this city are mostly Enchanters who entered after the bookstore appeared in Nolan."
It dawned on Jenkins. "So, is everyone's book different?"
"They're all just ordinary books. You can go back to that bookstore and buy another if you want. Countless people have tried in the past, but the way out doesn't seem to be there."
For a while after, they ate in silence. As Jenkins mulled over the information he'd just received, he suddenly realized sothing.
"Every creature that enters gets an old book, but why did Choco—"
"ow!"
The cat, which had been eating with its head down, suddenly cried out. Jenkins looked up and saw a man in a trench coat hurrying past the front of the restaurant. He had clearly noticed the two of them eating but seed unwilling to greet them.
"Pay him no mind."
Mr. Black Cat said, "That guy was very arrogant when he first arrived. He got into so conflicts and ended up getting beaten badly. He seems to be a mber of so heretical cult..."
The man thought for a mont, then nodded at Jenkins. "Soone recognized the divine arts he uses as unique to the Gear King's sect."
"He's a mber of the Gear Artisans' Association?"
"Yes. He traded secrets from his sect with so of the older residents here, though they weren't worth much. I rember him saying his organization was searching for a steam-powered device built by the 10th Epoch civilization, sowhere underground in Nolan. I think it was supposed to help with so kind of calculation, but my mory is a bit hazy... That was last week, I think. Sorry, I've been losing track of ti lately."
He gave Jenkins an apologetic smile. "There were about seven of us, myself included, who suspected that whatever was under Nolan might be the cause of all this, so we went to take a look. But the mine tunnels just ended halfway through, like this city that's only partially here. Thinking back on it, we must have been out of our minds. How could sothing under Nolan possibly be connected to an old bookstore that moves all over the material world?"
This Cursed Item seems to have never been discovered by the Orthodox Churches, as no Enchanter, regardless of the era they entered from, could recall its designation number. But this place was more than just a simple prison. According to Mr. Black Cat, every so often, extrely bizarre creatures would appear from the sky and randomly prey on the people trapped here.
However, this only happened during periods when the bookstore didn't exist anywhere in the material world, which suggested that during those tis, it was drifting in the space between reality and illusion.
And those predators were very likely higher beings sealed in a subspace, like that Corpse Serpent encountered in Bel Diran.
Mr. Black Cat seed to be a rather optimistic person. While discussing their current situation with Jenkins, he only showed a hint of worry. And when Jenkins asked him what his plans were, Mr. Black Cat's answer was sowhat surprising.
"Plans? I know I don't have the ability to escape this place on my own, so my only option is to find soone with hope and help them. Co with after we finish eating. I'll take you to et soone. He's the one I was talking about, the old-tir who arrived here in the year 1083 of the Universal Calendar."
"He has a blue exotic ability?"
"Exotic ability?"
Mr. Black Cat asked back in surprise. "No, no, no. Even with a rare ability like that, a human is still just a human. This is a true exotic creature. Yes, just like the ones we hear about in myths. Can you even imagine, Candle Mr.? When I first saw him, I thought I'd gone completely mad!"
After dinner, Mr. Black Cat led Jenkins east along the main avenue, finally stopping in front of a high-end club. He scanned the surroundings for a mont before ushering Jenkins inside.
In the real world, the mbership fees for a club like this would be exorbitant, but here, everything was free. There were just no chefs or waiters.
The stranger lived in one of the VIP lounges on the club's second floor. Mr. Black Cat explained that he usually didn't like to interact with new people. If it weren't for a token he carried, one related to an unfamiliar exotic race, Mr. Black Cat would never have been able to get to know him.
"You have to understand, he's quite eccentric, so I can't be sure if he'll take a liking to you. But there's no denying that he is an elder of imnse wisdom, even if he looks very young!"
He cautioned in a low voice as they ascended the magnificent, spiraling staircase.
Chocolate's attention had been on the crystal chandelier, but her little nose suddenly twitched a few tis, and her beautiful, amber eyes shifted upwards.
"I understand... Are there any other details I should be aware of? I imagine an exotic creature like this might have so habits that are different from humans."
"Mr. Saramanda is very easygoing. No strange habits."
At the top of the stairs on the second floor, they both stood before a massive, full-length mirror to straighten their clothes and hair. Jenkins had intended to use Mr. Black Cat's wooden comb to groom Chocolate's fur, but the cat nearly clawed his face to ribbons.
Knock, knock, knock.
Standing before the lounge door, Mr. Black Cat knocked gently.
As per the request of our many readers, a VIP ad-free mbership function is now available.
Click to view
Reviews
All reviews (0)